Europe's Corporate Bond Boom

Issuance is Soaring but Quality May be Slipping

Not with a whimper, but a bang. That's how European corporate bond markets are ending 2013, with strong demand driving issuance to record levels, particularly for high-yield bonds.

European returns are far outpacing those in the U.S., and the European market has become far more robust: a blessing for a continent where banks are deleveraging and companies need financing. But some red flags are starting to be raised, both in terms of...